


Two Men and a Dog

by StackerPentecost



Category: Daredevil (TV), Marvel, The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Bisexual Frank Castle, Demisexual Matt Murdock, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Halloween, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-10-28
Packaged: 2019-08-08 20:37:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16436363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StackerPentecost/pseuds/StackerPentecost
Summary: Matt tries to convince Frank to go out on Halloween.





	Two Men and a Dog

**Author's Note:**

  * For [frankiebaby](https://archiveofourown.org/users/frankiebaby/gifts).



> I haven't even finished Daredevil season 3 and I already need something sweet to soothe my soul.

“Come on, go out with me. It’ll be fun.”

“No.”

“Frank, please.”   


“I am not going out on Halloween unless it’s to get more whiskey and Chinese food.”

Matt crossed his arms over his chest, shooting a glare in Frank’s direction. It still amazed him that a blind man could even do that, but Matt had a mean stink eye when he felt like it, always able to hone in on Frank and glare like he’d just cursed out Christ himself. 

Why did he even want to go out on Halloween anyway? They couldn’t go in their hero attire, that was way too noticeable, even with everyone else dressed up. The Devil of Hell’s Kitchen was worshiped on these streets and Frank didn’t have anything to cover his face like Matt, which ran the risk of some duty cop recognizing his ugly mug and calling for backup. So that meant they would just be out in plain clothes and how in the hell was that fun? It’s not like they had kids. 

Frank swallowed at that, the memory of the times he and Maria had taken Lisa and Frank Jr. out still fresh in his mind even after all this time, even after those responsible for their deaths had been wiped off this earth. Usually Matt was good about that shit, not bringing anything up to make Frank remember, but for whatever reason he didn’t seem to be affording the other man the normal courtesies. Why was this so damn important to him? It wasn’t like orphans went trick or treating. Wait, did they?

Matt must have heard his heartbeat or another tell tale sign of his unpleasant feelings as his expression changed then, his arms dropping to his sides.    
  
“Look, I don’t mean to make this painful for you, I just think this could be good. It could be fun. We rarely have fun, unless you count taking Daisy to the dog park.” Matt motioned to the pit bull sleeping by Frank’s feet, her white snout resting on her paws. 

  
“I know Red, I know, but that doesn’t make it any fucking easier.” He reverted back to that nickname only when he was unhappy. He called Matt that when they first met, when Matt was simply Daredevil or rather the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen and he’d been dubbed the Punisher by local law enforcement and the media. But that had been a long time ago, before he’d really gotten to know Matt Murdock, the man underneath the suit and the horns. 

Matt had grown quiet and Frank could tell he was thinking things over. That was definitely his thinking face anyway. 

“What if...what if we just sit outside on the stoop and hand out candy? Would that be so bad? We can even take Daisy with us. At best, we make some kids happy. At worst, everyone runs away because of your face.” He shrugged. 

  
Frank raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong with my face? If I do remember, last night you were fucking pleased as punch with my face when I-”

“Hey! There are children in the room!” Matt moved to cover Daisy’s ears. She barely noticed, cracking an open eye before it immediately closed again. “I do like your face, I just meant that you tend to...scowl, that’s all.”

  
“Oh I do, do I?” Frank sat up, pretending to be aghast. “And why have I never heard about this before?”

Matt shrugged. “I thought you knew. You have a resting bitch face, Frank. That’s just the way the world is.”

“Says the blind man.” Frank huffed. He leaned back into the couch and heaved a sigh. He supposed there were worse things to do on Halloween. And as long as Matt was around, he’d be okay. He needed that, a steady presence to keep himself from drowning in the shitshow that was always going on inside his head. Matt understood this because his head too, was a circus full of shit. An organized one, but a circus nonetheless.

Frank shot Matt another half-hearted glare. “Fine. We can sit on the fucking porch and hand out candy like every other normal family on in this country even though we are the furthest thing from that.”

Matt smiled softly to himself. “You called us a family.”

“Yeah, didn’t you know? A killer fugitive, his blind ninja partner and their rescue dog are now considered the epitome of a family unit.” 

Matt stood up and leaned over to plant a kiss on Frank’s nose. “You can call me your boyfriend, you’re allowed to do that you know. We have been together for several years now. I think we can officially say we’re dating.” 

“Dating? I thought you were my demisexual housekeeper.” Frank bit his lip. “That’s the right word, isn’t it? I got it right this time?” 

Matt chuckled. “You did, good job. It’s only taken you approximately three and a half years but you’re getting there. Now come on, I already went and bought a metric ton of candy and the trick or treating starts soon.” 

Frank rolled his eyes and stood up. “I know asshole, I knew you were hiding something under a blanket in the closet but I just thought it was a dead body.”

Matt turned and looked at him, slightly horrified. “You did?”

Frank couldn’t hold back his snicker. “No dumbass, I just figured you’d tell me eventually. You know we respect each other’s space in this house.”

* * *

 

So that’s how Frank Castle found his ass parked on the concrete steps outside his shared brownstone, a huge bowl of candy at his feet, his blind idiot of a boyfriend at his side and their dog sitting next to them. 

Frank was surprised by the amount of people. Normally he wasn’t so good in crowds but it was okay for the most part, the people didn’t get too close thanks to Daisy’s watchful eye and apparently his face, though he tried to smile. If it got too much, Matt would know without any prompting to take his hand and give it a squeeze. But, since Matt had to play the role of blind guy with no superpowers, that meant Frank was the one handing people candy. One baby cried upon seeing him so he tried his damnedest to smile brightly. Matt found the whole thing hilarious. 

It must’ve worked because there were no more crying infants and the kids actually smiled back at him when he gave them their treats. So many of them reminded them of his kids. Frank Jr. had wanted to be a soldier every year, just like his dad. It took some prodding but eventually he moved on to things that actually interested him. Lisa was obsessed with princesses for a while, until she saw a half rotting zombie one year and decided the undead beat any princess anywhere at any time. He could still smell the paint Maria had bought to use for her decayed face. Frank swallowed, trying to ignore the ache in his heart.

But then he looked over at Matt, who had this bright, almost dopey grin on his face, his hand stroking down Daisy’s back as a little boy in a red and gold armor (that was Iron Man, right? Fuck, he had a hard time remembering all the people doing the hero gig, there were so many now) held out his hand for her to sniff. She did, then proceeded to lick what were probably some sticky fingers. At this display, he felt his chest lighten considerably.

“Ya know,” He began once the people had thinned out a bit, “I bet Jessica is getting to drink tonight like I wanted to.”

Matt snorted. “Jessica barely qualifies as a functioning human. She doesn’t exactly count as a good role model for well...anything besides alcoholism.” 

Frank had to admit that Matt had a point. It was then that a question he’d been harboring all night slipped past his lips, “Why are you doing, man? What does it matter to you? I know how you grew up, all by yourself. I doubt you ever did any of this sh-” A child approached and he quickly bit his tongue, “-stuff.” He placed a chocolate bar in the little girl’s pumpkin and smiled as she skipped away before continuing. “Anyway, why were you so hell bent on this?”

Matt was quiet for a long moment, that reflective look on his face again. He tilted his head toward Frank. “It’s not that bad to be out here, is it?”

Frank bit his lip before squeezing Matt’s hand. “No, I suppose it’s not. But that still doesn’t answer my question.”

Matt paused again before shrugging. “I may have never had a childhood like this, but I’ve decided I want to make more happy memories so I can push out all the bad ones. And I’ve been making a lot of those happy memories with you. This is just one I really wanted to try and add to the others. So thanks for going along with all this.” 

Frank felt his throat clog again, but this time it wasn’t from the burden of grief. How did he ever get so lucky as to find himself in a place where he got to belong to such a good man? Before Frank could talk himself out of it, he let go of Matt’s hand, instead reaching with both hands to frame that beautiful face and kiss him fiercely. Usually he wasn’t much for PDA beyond hand holding but he couldn’t help himself this time. When they parted, Frank murmured so only they could hear, “I love you.”

Frank had never seen Matt smile so wide. “I love you too. I hope this means you’re gonna stick around for a few more years.”

Frank smiled softly. “I’m not going anywhere and that’s a promise.” 


End file.
